


Have Faith

by AevsFires



Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: Because I adore her, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Pre-Romance, i guess, i will carry this ship to my grave, slight sprinkling of angst, who else loves Faith?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-23
Updated: 2020-02-23
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:14:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22866148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AevsFires/pseuds/AevsFires
Summary: The butterflies were multiplying.Faith and Varian have a talk. Set after “Once a Handmaiden.”
Relationships: Varian (Disney) and Faith (Disney: Tangled)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 48





	Have Faith

**Author's Note:**

> WARNING: this fic has spoilers for today’s episode Once A Handmaiden.   
> Who else enjoyed the episode? Because I loved it and I am so ready to die watching that finale. Anyway, I love what little we’ve seen of Faith and now that we finally have a name for her, I feel free to write about her.   
> I wrote this at six AM in a daze after watching the episode, so I apologize for any errors.

Faith paced in the clearing outside the Snuggly Duckling, try to process what the Princess had just told her. 

She hadn’t meant to run off, earlier. But with the kingdom on edge and her anxiety already at its peak, Mrs. Crowley scolding her had been the final straw. She had needed to clear her head. 

If she had known what would come of it, she never would have run away. 

Rapunzel’s words cut to her very core. Cassandra had impersonated her, used her image to hide in plain sight. And when she had been exposed, one thing led to another and- 

Well. They had all seen the kingdom. 

The mere thought of it made Faith shudder. Black rocks tearing apart the city, houses crumbling to rubble and the castle like a fortress surrounded by the deadly black spikes. 

Faith had politely excused herself before Rapunzel could finish her explanation, sensing the Princess’s distress. Also, she needed to think. 

Cassandra had used her. And she’d been entirely oblivious to it. Had she seen Faith with Mrs. Crowley, seen her flee the scene in tears? If so, did that make it her fault? If she had just managed to hold it together, Cassandra would never have been able to use her appearance. 

_No, no,_ Faith told herself firmly. There was no way she could have known. It had been Cassandra’s choice to use her identity; she wasn’t to blame for this. 

A sniffle shook her from her thoughts. Faith glanced over her shoulder. 

It was Varian. 

He was curled against the outer wall of the building, staring at the ground with a deep frown on his face. 

Faith hadn’t seen him in a while- not since the aftermath of Cassandra’s last attack on Corona. And before that, the time the red rocks appeared. Their meetings were few and far between, but Faith enjoyed them. She wouldn’t exactly call them friends- though they had shared a hug once or twice. Wherever they stood though, it was nice to see him. 

“You ok?” she asked softly. 

Varian’s eyes shot up, wide and startled. He relaxed slightly when he caught sight of her. “Oh, hey, Faith,” he said, clearly surprised to see her. “I- I’m fine.” 

Faith studied him, unconvinced. He was sitting stiffly, holding one hand close to his chest. Varian seemed uncomfortable under her intense gaze, shifting a little, only let out a pained gasp. 

She knew it. “You got hurt, didn’t you?” 

“I told you, I’m fine-“ 

“Varian.” She sounded as tired as she felt. 

Varian sighed, and Faith knew she had won. “Ok, my ribs hurt a bit and I _think_ I sprained my wrist. It’s no big deal, I’ve had worse.” 

“I know.” Faith was the one who patched him up these days, after all. She knelt beside him. “Can I look?” 

After a moment, Varian nodded, holding out his left hand. Faith gingerly slid his glove off, uttering a soft apology when he flinched. His wrist was revealed to be bruised and a little puffy. Certainly not the worst injury she’d seen on Varian, but it didn’t make her feel any better. 

“It’s sprained,” she confirmed, giving Varian a sharp look. “You’d better let me wrap it up later. _And_ your ribs. They’re still healing.” 

“Oh- ok.” Varian had suddenly become very interested in a nearby firefly. 

Faith could feel the heat spreading through her cheeks. “Yeah....um- other than that I think you’re good.” She paused. “Physically, at least.” The unspoken words hung between them. 

_Emotionally? That’s the part I’m not so sure about._

Faith was out of her depth, here. She was equipped to deal with physical injuries, not mental ones. She didn’t know how deep Varian’s trauma ran. He rarely talked about it- even with the Princess. That much she had gathered from their interactions. But right now, she had the feeling that wasn’t the only thing on his mind. 

“Varian...” she started, scrambling for the right words, “are you- are you really alright?” She wasn’t expecting an answer. 

“I hurt her.” 

Faith blinked. The words were whispered, barely audible, but she could sense the guilt in them. 

“Cassandra?” she guessed. 

Varian nodded, and Faith could’ve sworn she saw tears in his eyes. “Project Obsidian,” he murmured, “it was something Eugene and I were working on. Just- just in case. But the launcher....it- it must’ve malfunctioned or something, and-“ his voice cracked. “The- the amber, it....” he didn’t finish. 

Faith was able to piece together the rest. “It wasn’t your fault, Varian, you didn’t know.” 

“But I could’ve-“ 

“But you _didn’t_.” Faith wouldn’t let him tear himself apart over an accident. If Cassandra using her identity in her plans wasn’t her fault, then Varian wasn’t at fault either. She took his uninjured hand, squeezing it gently. “Please, trust me on this? You shouldn’t blame yourself for the things you can’t control.” 

Varian exhaled slowly, squeezing back. “I- I know, Faith. Some days it’s just hard to remember that.” 

“I get it,” Faith assured him. “But I promise you it’ll get easier. You just need to have a little faith in yourself.” 

_“Uh-huh,”_ came Varian’s snarky reply. “Was the pun intentional?” 

Faith playfully smacked his arm. “I’m trying to have a heart to heart with you!” 

“Oh, that’s what that was?” Varian was smiling, now and he settled back against the wall, absently brushing his thumb over Faith’s hand. She couldn’t help but grin back as she leaned closer to him. 

The two sat in peaceful silence for a few minutes, basking in the moonlight shining through the treetops. Sounds of laughter and music emanated from the Snuggly Duckling- Faith assumed Rapunzel or another one of her friends was trying to lift the peoples’ spirits. She couldn’t blame them, for trying to distract themselves, today hadn’t ended well for anyone. 

“Hey, Faith?” Varian said suddenly. 

Faith hummed. “Yeah?” 

“I- I don’t mean to be...rude, or anything, but....when did you get so... confident?” 

The question startled her. She wasn’t, she really wasn’t. Always anxious, always unsure of herself, always trying to hide how she felt.... she was anything _but_ confident. 

But around Varian.... she didn’t feel like she had to hide. There was a sort of bond between them, an unshakable trust she had placed in him. Faith still got butterflies in her stomach around him- but a good kind. 

“I guess you bring out the best in me.” Faith surprised herself with her own answer. True, they hadn’t known each other long, and they didn’t know each other very well, but Faith felt drawn to Varian in a way she didn’t quite understand. 

“Uh, thanks?” 

Faith turned red as a tomato. She hadn’t realized what it would sound like out loud- _oh my gosh they were still holding hands._

Varian seemed to come to exact same realization she had, and they jerked away from each other simultaneously. 

Burying her face in her hands, Faith groaned. “I didn’t mean it like that.” 

“Yeah, I- I kinda figured that out.” Varian laughed nervously. “That’s, um, that’s the kind of thing a friend would say. Right?” He didn’t sound so sure of himself. 

Faith wasn’t really sure, either.

The ensuing silence was infinitely more awkward than the last, as both teens avoided looking at each other, taking turns opening their mouths to say something before deciding otherwise. 

Faith fidgeted with her apron, turning over Varian’s words in her head. “You-“ she tried, cringing at the slight wobble in her voice. The butterflies were multiplying. “You see me as a friend?” 

Varian’s jaw dropped. “Well, _obviously_.” His hand cautiously found hers again, sending a blush to both of their faces this time. “I- you’re one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met. You’re smart, a- and you’re so much fun to be around and-“ 

Faith didn’t let him finish. Spurned on by a sudden burst of courage, she leaned in and kissed Varian on the cheek. 

“I think you’re amazing, too,” she confessed as she pulled away, blushing furiously. 

Varian swallowed. “I- I wasn’t done.” He closed his eyes for a second, taking a deep breath before letting the words out. “I know I don’t talk much, about- about _that_ , but it- it really means a lot that you’re always ready to listen, even to the stuff that isn’t important. And you don’t push me to talk about those... _other things_. So- so thanks. For, you know. Being there.” 

Faith was speechless. Her heart pounded in her chest, warmth spreading through her. Of all of Varian’s friends- Rapunzel, Eugene, Lance- why her? Why was he telling her this? She didn’t understand. 

But looking into his eyes, right now, maybe she did. Maybe he did, too. 

Somehow, Faith found the words. “And I always will be.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope to continue this as a one shot series, adding onto Faith and Varian’s relationship. I wrote this as a pre-establishes friendship because I have plans for stories taking place before this, so you’ll get to see them grow closer!   
> I hope you all enjoyed! If you did, check out my tumblr @angiethelivewire. I post about tangled and my upcoming fics on there!


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